Secured mailbox

ABSTRACT

A secured mailbox for receiving mail of different character and comprising: a vertical throat of horizontal cross section defined by back, front and side walls; a lower receptacle into which said throat opens and having an access door secured by a lock; a door pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis to the upper edge of said front wall and providing upper and lower rectangular panels of substantially the same size and shape, said lower door panel corresponding in size and shape to the cross sectional area of said throat, said back and side walls extending above the top edge of said front wall a distance substantially equal to the height of the upper door panel when the latter is in vertical position; a rectangular top wall secured to the upper edges of said side and back walls and having a length substantially twice the corresponding dimension of the throat; the top edge of the front wall, the side walls above the top edge of the front wall and the undersurface of said top wall defining an opening which is normally closed by the upper door panel when the latter is in vertical position and through which mail is passed when the upper door panel is in a horizontal position; and, a door stop extending horizontally outwardly from the upper edge of said front wall.

United States Patent Earle Apr. 29, 1975 SECURED MAILBOX [57] ABSTRACT 7Inventor; Wil i Earle, 102 E pebb|e Beach A secured mailbox forreceiving mail of different char- D Tempe A i 85282 acter andcomprising: a vertical throat of horizontal cross section defined byback, front and side walls; a [22] Filed: Apr. 29, 1974 211 App]. No.:464,796

[52] U.S. Cl 232/17; 232/45 [51] Int. Cl A47g 29/12 [58] Field of Search232/17, 45, 46, 47, 38, 232/39, 53

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 386,757 7/1888 Regcstcr232/53 X 774,218 11/1904 Whalen l 232/47 827,482 7/1906 Van Dorn 232/381,132.756 3/1915 Wiser 232/53 1,480,452 1/1924 Kolstad 232/17 1,506,6468/1924 Kolstad 232/45 2,405,730 8/1946 Bankson 232/17 3,389,854 6/1968Coopcrsmith 232/46 Primary Examiner-Francis K. Zugel Alrorney, Agent, orFirn1.lohri A. Robertson lower receptacle into which said throat opensand having an access door secured by a lock; a door pivotally mounted ona horizontal axis to the upper edge of said front wall and providingupper and lower rectangular panels of substantially the same size andshape, said lower door panel corresponding in size and shape to thecross sectional area of said throat, said back and side walls extendingabove the top edge of said front wall a distance substantially equal tothe height of the upper door panel when the latter is in verticalposition; a rectangular top wall secured to the upper edges of said sideand back walls and having a length substantially twice the correspondingdimension of the throat; the top edge of the front wall, the side wallsabove the top edge of the front wall and the undersurface of said topwall defining an opening which is normally closed by the upper doorpanel' when the latter is in vertical position and through which mail ispassed when the upper door panel is in a horizontal position; and, adoor stop extending horizontally outwardly from the upper edge of saidfront wall.

8 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures a 1 l /8J| .23 /6 25 /0 I? 26 2427 d i/3/:i--b---,

34 mm, /2: W mu. 6,; 35. 3/ n iig-illi PATENTEDAPRZSIQYS SHEET 2 OF 2lllllllll SECURED MAILBOX The present invention relates to mailboxes,and is concerned primarily with a mailbox that is secured against theftof mail which has been deposited therein and will receive mail ofdifferent classes with a single delivery operation on the part of thepostman.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION At the present time, the average homedweller receives mail of different character which may be, for thepurposes of this specification, divided into two classes. One of theseis first class mail which is ordinarily valuable, and the other is lessvaluable mail, of which periodicals, magazines, circulars, and the likeare typical. The desirability of protecting first class mail againsttheft and the lack of the need of any such protection for less valuablemail has long been recognized, with the result that much effort has beenexpended on the project of providing a mailbox into which first classmail is deposited into a secured receptacle and less valuable mail intoan unsecured compartment designed for its reception. A plurality ofpatents have issued over the years on mailboxes of this general nature.

Mailboxes of the type above noted have one basic inherent feature whichis looked upon with disfavor by the postal authorities. This featureresides in the fact that the secured receptacle for first class mailincludes a slot through which the letters which comprise the majorportion of first class mail are passed. These slots of necessity arenarrow so as to prevent access to the interior of the secured receptacleby unauthorized persons, and due to this narrow dimension, it ispractical for the postman to insert only one letter at a time throughthe slot. It may be that two or even three letters might be compressedinto a single packet and passed through the slot on a single operation,but such operation would be accompanied by difficulty and inconvenience.Thus, from the practical aspect, the postman ordinarily passes eachletter individually through the slot. This is time consuming and is acondition which is to be avoided ifa mailbox is to meet the approval ofthe postal authorities.

Many homes are located away from the road, street or avenue to whichthey are addressed. This condition is particularly true in suburbancommunities. When a mailbox is located closely adjacent to the door ofsuch a home, which is now the practice which is more prevalent, thepostman must walk from the street to the mailbox, deposit the mailtherein, and retrace his steps. When it is considered that this traveltime is repeated over and over again as the postman makes his rounds, itis easy to recognize the amount of time which is lost on each round. Forthis reason, postal authorities dealing with the problem of increasingefficiency of the postal operation are considering the proposition ofmaking it attractive for a homeowner to locate the mailbox for that homeat the street or sidewalk over which the postman travels in making hisrounds.

If such a mailbox is to be acceptable to the homeowner, it must beeffectively secured against removal of mail of all classes therefrom byan unauthorized person. Moreover, the mailbox will have to be purchasedeither by the homeowner or supplied by the postal authorities. In eithercase, the mailbox must be available at low cost and this factorindicates that it should be the epitome of simplicity.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION With the foregoing conditions in mind, thepresent invention has in view the following objectives:

1. To provide a secured mailbox which is of simple construction,provides for the depositing of mail of all classes thereinto by a singleoperation on the part of the postman, and includes a receptacle whichreceives the mail and which includes an access door under the control ofa lock. v

2. To provide a mailbox of the type noted which is constructed anddesigned so that it be mounted either on a post or the wall of abuilding.

3. To provide a mailbox of the character aforesaid which includes, as acharacteristic and essential element, a throat of horizontal,rectangular cross section which opens at its lower end onto a securedreceptacle. This throat is defined by back, front and side walls, withthe back and side walls extending above the top edge of the front wall adistance substantially equal to the distance between the back and frontwalls. A top wall is mounted on the upper edges of the back and sidewalls and cooperates with the side walls and upper edge of the back wallin defining an opening with which the throat communicates at its upperend.

4. To provide, in a mailbox of the kind described, a door which ispivotally mounted on the upper edge of the front wall and whichcomprises upper and lower door panels of substantially the same size andshape, with each panel corresponding in size and shape to the horizontalcross sectional area of the throat.

5. To provide, in a mailbox of the type noted, a top wall having adimension normal to the back and front walls which is twice the distancebetween the front and back walls to prevent effective insertion of atool through the door when in a partially open position for thesurreptitious removal of mail which has been deposited into thereceptacle.

6. To provide, in a mailbox of the character noted, a door stop in theform of a horizontal flange which extends outwardly of the throat at thetop edge thereof which facilitates swinging of the door into ahorizontal position by a postman and then having it remain in thatposition as mail is passed through the opening aforesaid.

Various other more detailed objects and advantages of the invention,such as arise in connection with carrying out the above ideas in apractical embodiment, will, in part, become apparent and, in part, behereafter stated as the description of theinvention proceeds.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The foregoing objects are achieved by providingtwo embodiments of a mailbox, each of which fulfills the above objectsand which differ only in the relative vertical dimensions of the backand front walls, whereby one embodiment is adapted to be mounted on apost and the other against the wall of a building. Each embodimentcomprises a throat of rectangular, horizontal cross section defined byfront, back and side walls. The throat at its lower end opens into andcommunicates with a secured receptacle having a hingedly mounted doorwhich is secured by a lock.

The side and back walls extend vertically upwardly beyond the level ofthe top edge of the front wall a distance equal to the distance betweenthe front and back walls. A top wall is secured to the upper edges ofthe side and back walls and has a dimension in a direction normal to thefront and back walls that is twice the distance between the front andback walls.

A door is pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis to the top edge of thefront wall and presents upper and lower panels delineated by the pivotalmounting and of the same size and shape. Thus, the lower door panel isof substantially the same size and shape as the cross sectional area ofthe throat which it closes when the door is in a horizontal position,while the upper door panel is of the same size and shape as the openingdefined by the top edge of the front wall, side walls and top wall toclose that opening when the door is in a vertical position.

A door stop is provided in the form of a horizontal flange which extendsforwardly of the front wall and is of sufficient extent to adequatelyperform the function of stopping the door as it is swung into ahorizontal position and holding it in that position as a postman passesmail through the opening therefor. Ordinarily this flange will becomparatively narrow, speaking with reference to a dimension normal tothe front wall and as compared to that part of the top wall whichextends beyond the front wall. The side walls are continued beyond thefront wall so that their front edges extend between the front edges ofthe top wall and flange aforesaid and thus are inclined with respect tothe vertical.

The lower door panel has a weight slightly greater than that of theupper door panel so that the door is normally maintained in a verticalposition.

In the embodiment designed for mounting the mailbox on a post along sideof a street or sidewalk, the post is secured to the outer section of thefront wall with its upper end engaging the flange. In this embodiment,the front wall is continued downwardly beyond the level of the lower endof the throat, whereby it constitutes the front wall of the securedreceptacle. The'ba'ck wall terminates at the level of the lower end ofthe throat.

In the other embodiment, the back wall is secured to the wall of adwelling in any preferred manner and this back wall is continueddownwardly beyond the level of the lower end of the throat, whereby itis constituted the back wall of the secured receptacle. The front wallterminates at its lowerend at the level of the lower end of the throat.

For a full and more complete understanding of the invention, referencemay be had to the following description and the accompanyingdrawings'wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective of a secured mailbox designed in accordance withthe precepts of this invention and illustrated as mounted on the upperend of a post;

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross section taken on the plane of the lines 22 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an elevation looking at the back of the mailbox of FIGS. 1 and2, that is from the left of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective of another embodiment of a mailbox embodying theprecepts of this invention in which the mailbox is mounted on the wallofa dwelling;

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross section taken on the plane of the line 5-5 ofFIG. 4, and

FIG. 6 is an elevation looking at the front of the mailbox of FIGS. 4and 5.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawingswherein like reference characters denote corresponding elementsthroughout the several views, and first more particularly to FIGS. 1, 2and 3, the preferred embodiment is identified in its entirety by thereference character 10 and is shown as mounted on a vertical post 11.Mailbox 10 includes as a characteristic and essential element a throat12 that is of rectangular, horizontal cross section, defined by a backwall 13, side walls 14 and a front wall 15. As shown in FIG. 2, frontwall 15 has an upper edge 16. Back wall 13 and side walls 14 arecontinued upwardly above the level of top edge 16 a distance equal tothe distance between back wall 13 and front wall 15. This distance whichthe back and side walls are extended upwardly above level 16 isrepresented by the dimensional arrows a of FIG. 2. The distance betweenthe back 13 and front wall 15 is depicted by the dimensional arrows b ofFIG. 2. It is important to note that a is equal to b.

A top wall 17 is secured to the upper edges of back 13 and side walls 14in any preferred manner, such as by being integral therewith or weldedor soldered thereto. Top wall 17 is horizontal and has a dimension 0normal to back wall 13 which is equal to twice the distance between backwall 13 and front wall 15 or 2b. Top edge 16 of front wall 15, sidewalls 14 and top wall 17 define an opening 18 through which mail ispassed, as will be later described.

Extending forwardly of front wall 15 at edge 16 is a door stop in theform of a horizontal flange l9. Flange 19 is comparatively narrow ascompared to that portion of top wall 17 which extends forwardly ofopening 18, having an extent just sufficient to provide the functionrequired of it, namely stopping swinging movement of a door to be laterdescribed and maintaining that door in a horizontal position. To insureof door 23 remaining in horizontal position, a magnet may be mountedeither on flange 19 or upper door panel 25. This magnet is designated 8.

It will be noted that side walls 14 present portions which extend abovetop edge 16 and forwardly of opening 18. These portions are identifiedat-20 and they te-rminate in inclined edges 21.

A flat door is referred to in its entirety by the reference character23. It comprises a lower door panel 24 and an upper door panel 25 whichis provided with any appropriate form of a hand or finger engaging means26. Door panels 24 and 25 are coplanar. Door 23 is pivotally mounted onupper edge 16 of front wall 15 on the horizontal axis represented bypivot 27. It is important to note that under normal conditions, door 23will assume the vertical position illustrated by broken lines in FIG. 2and full lines in FIG. 3. To assure of this, lower door panel 24 willhave a weight slightly in excess of upper door'panel 25 and may becounterweighted for this purpose. An an alternative, a magnet may bemounted on either lower door panel 24 or front wall 15. As illustrated,this magnet is on front wall 15 and is designated 9 It is also importantto note that lower door panel 24 has a size and shape substantially thesame as a horizontal cross sectional area of throat 12 so as to closethe upper end of this throat when door 23 is in the horizontal positionof FIG 2. Also, that upper door panel 25 has dimensions corresponding tothose of opening 18 which it closes when door 23 is in verticalposition. It is important to close this opening on those occasions whena postman is not delivering mail to render the mailbox weatherproof toprevent the entry of rain, snow or other foreign matter into the throat12.

Throat 12 at its lower end opens into a secured receptacle referred toin its entirety by the reference character 28. Receptacle 28 has a frontwall provided by a continuation of the front wall of throat 12, a bottomwall 29, and a rear wall 30 formed with an opening 31 which is normallyclosed by a closure 32 that is hingedly mounted at 33 to the rear edgeof bottom wall 29.

It is intended that receptacle 28 be secured by any appropriate lockingdevice that is associated with closure 32. Thus, purely by way ofexample, closure 32 is shown as formed with a slot 34 which receives ahasp 35 extending outwardly from rear wall 30 and to which a padlock maybe applied in a well known manner.

It is important to note that back wall 13 of throat 12 has an extent atleast as great as the dimension of lower door panel 24 that is normal topivot 27. Stating it another way, the vertical dimension of rear wall 13from the level of top edge 16 to its lower end is represented by thedimensional arrows d and d should be b or b+, as illustrated d b. Thus,the vertical extent of throat 12 is determined by lower edge of rearwall 13 which is identified at 35, and from this edge a receptacle lid36 extends to rear wall 30, and between portions of side walls 14 whichextend beyond back wall 13, such portions being designated 37.

Post 11 is secured to the exposed face of front wall 15 and underface offlange 19in any preferred manner, there being many well knownconventional instrumentalities for achieving this mounting.

OPERATION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The mailbox of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3will ordinarily be mounted along the side of a street or sidewalk, withthe front wall 15 facing away from the premises. In this position, it ismost conveniently available to a postman. When the latter arrives tomake a delivery, he merely engages the handle 26 and pulls the door intothe horizontal position illustrated in FIG. 3. All of the mail for thataddress is then inserted into the upper horizontal structure defined bytop wall 17, door 23, side walls 14 and that portion of back wall 12which extends above the level of top edge 16. Under those circumstanceswhich obtain for most average households, all of the mail for onedelivery may be inserted with a single operation. The postman thenswings the door into the vertical position illustrated by broken linesin FIG. 2 and full lines in FIG. 3. This will cause all of the mail toalign with throat 12 and fall downwardly into receptacle 28. Inasmuch asthroat 12 has a capacity above the lower edge of door panel 24 which isless than that of receptacle 28, all of the mail will fall into thelatter and clear the lower edge of door panel 24 so that the door 23 mayagain be operated with a swinging movement without engaging the mail.Ordinarily, the mail will be removed from the box between regulardeliveries thereof. However, should the homeowner miss a delivery inremoving mail, the receptacle 28 has sufficient capacity to accommodaterepeated deliveries. Thus, it may be stated that as a general rule thereceptacle 28 should be of a capacity which, combined with that ofthroat 12 below the lower edge of door panel 24 when in a verticalposition, is at least twice as great as the capacity of throat 12 abovethe lower edge of door panel 24 when in a vertical position.

It will be understood that door 32 is ordinarily closed and a padlockapplied to hasp 35. When the occupant of the home to which the mailboxis appended is desirous of acquiring his mail, the padlock is unlocked,door 34 opened, and the mail withdrawn from receptacle 28.

It is evident that due to the extent of top wall 17 it would beimpossible for a thief to insert an elongated tool, such as a wire orrod, with a pickup device at its lower end, such as an adhesive or ahook, through opening 18 with the door 23 in a partially open positionto the extent that the lower end of such a tool would reach mail in thereceptacle 28.

It is also important to note that the above described mailbox is theepitome of simplicity and yet performs all of the functions required ofit, namely the easy delivery of the mail by the postman and the securingof the mail after such delivery until it is removed by the homeowner.

THE SECOND EMBODIMENT FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 illustrate an embodiment in whicha mailbox designated generally 38 is mounted on a wall 39 ofa building.Ordinarily such a box will be mounted close to the door of such adwelling. Mailbox 38 differs from mailbox 10 only in the dimensions ofthe front and back walls and the manner in which they enter intodefining the construction of the lower secured receptacle. Thus, asshown more clearly in FIG. 5, back wall 13 of FIG. 1 is replaced by aback wall 40 which extends throughout the entire height of the completemailbox, that is, from the rear edge of top wall 17 to the rear edge ofbottom wall 29 of receptacle 28. Also, front wall 15 of mailbox 10 isreplaced by a front wall 41 which extends between flange 19 and cover 42for receptacle 28 which extends from the lower edge of front wall 14 toa front wall 43 of the receptacle which takes the place of the rear wall30 of the receptacle 28 of mailbox 10. Another difference betweenmailboxes 10 and 38 is that with mailbox l0, mail is delivered from thefront and removed from the rear, whereas with mailbox 38, it is bothdelivered and removed from the front.

The operation attending the use of mailbox 38 is identically the same asthat above described in conjunction with mailbox 10, with the onlydifference residing in the fact that the mail is withdrawn from thesecured receptacle from the front rather than from the rear. Therelative dimension of the throat, the wall structure thereof, top wall,door and door panels are all the same as described above in connectionwith the embodiment of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.

In both embodiments, the wall structure of the throat and securedreceptacle, as well as the door, are of ferrous sheet metal of the typenow commonly used in mailboxes.

While preferred specific embodiments are herein disclosed, it is to beclearly understood that the invention is not to be limited to the exactconstructions, mechanisms and devices illustrated and described becausevarious modifications of these details may be provided in putting theinvention into practice.

What is claimed is:

I. In a secured mailbox for receiving mail of different classes on asingle delivery operation:

a. a vertical throat of rectangular horizontal cros section defined by aback wall, a pair of side walls and a front wall presenting a top edge;

b. said back and side wals extending above the level of said top edge adistance substantially equal'to the distance between said back and frontwalls;

0. a top wall secured to upper edges of said back and side walls andextending forwardly of said back wall a distance substantially twice thedistance between said back and front walls, said top wall presenting afront edge;

d. a door stop in the form of a flange extending forwardly of said frontwall at the top edge of said front wall and having a front edge;

e. said side walls having portions extending forwardly beyond the topedge of said front wall and terminating in end edges extending betweenthe front edges of said top wall and flange;

f. a flat door pivotally mounted on a horizontal pivot to said top edgeof said front wall and comprising coplanar lower and upper door panelsof substantially the same size and shape and defined by said pivot;

g. means for yieldably securing said door in a vertical position;

h. said lower door panel being of substantially the same size and shapeas a horizontal cross section of said throat;

i. the top edge of said front wall, said side walls and said topdefining an opening which mail is passed through as it is delivered tothe mailbox, said upper door panel being dimensioned to close saidopening when said door is in a vertical position;

j. a handle on the outer face of said upper door panel,

and

k. a secured receptacle into which said throat opens at its lower endreceiving mail from said throat, said receptacle having a capacity atleast twice the capacity of that portion of said throat above the loweredge of said lower door panel when said door is in vertical position.

2. The mailbox of claim 1 in which the means for securing the door invertical position comprises weighting the lower door panel so that ithas a weight slightly greater than that of the upper door panel.

3. The mailbox of claim 1 in which the means for securing the door in avertical position comprises magnetic means on one of the lower doorpanel and front wall.

4. The mailbox of claim 1, together with magnetic means on said flangefor maintaining said door in a horizontal position.

5. The mailbox of claim 1 which is adapted to be mounted on a postsecured to said front wall with its top end face engaging the undersideof said flange and in which said secured receptacle comprises:

5 a. a front wall that is a downward extension of the front wall of saidthroat;

b. a'bottom wall;

c. a rear wall formed with an access opening;

d. a pair of side walls;

e. an upper horizontal wall extending from the lower edge of the backwall of said throat to the top edge of said rear wall;

f. a hingedly mounted closure for said access opening, and

g. mechanism for securing said closure in a closed,

locked position.

6. The mailbox of claim 5 in which said closure is hingedly mounted atits lower edge on the rear edge of said bottom wall and said mechanismfor securing the closure in a closed, locked position comprises a slotformed in the upper portion of said closure and a hasp projectingrearwardly from said rear wall and adapted to have a padlock appliedthereto after it is passed through said slot.-

7. The mailbox of claim 1 which is adapted to be mounted on the wall ofa building and in which said secured receptacle comprises:

a. a rear wall that is a downward extension of the back wall of saidthroat;

b. a bottom wall;

c. a front wall formed with an access opening;

(1. a pair of side walls;

e. an upper horizontal wall extending from the lower edge of the frontwall of said throat to the top edge of the front wall of saidreceptacle;

f. a hingedly mounted closure for said access opening, and

g. mechanism for securing said closure in a closed,

locked position.

8. The mailbox of claim 7 in which said closure is hingedly mounted atits lower edge to the forward edge of said bottom wall and saidmechanism for securing the closure in a closed, locked positioncomprises a slot formed in said closure adjacent to its upper edge and ahasp projecting forwardly of the front wall of the receptacle which isreceived in said slot and adapted to have a padlock applied thereto.

1. In a secured mailbox for receiving mail of different classes on asingle delivery operation: a. a vertical throat of rectangularhorizontal cross section defined by a back wall, a pair of side wallsand a front wall presenting a top edge; b. said back and side walsextending above the level of said top edge a distance substantiallyequal to the distance between said back and front walls; c. a top wallsecured to upper edges of said back and side walls and extendingforwardly of said back wall a distance substantially twice the distancebetween said back and front walls, said top wall presenting a frontedge; d. a door stop in the form of a flange extending forwardly of saidfront wall at the top edge of said front wall and having a front edge;e. said side walls having portions extending forwardly beyond the topedge of said front wall and terminating in end edges extending betweenthe front edges of said top wall and flange; f. a flat door pivotallymounted on a horizontal pivot to said top edge of said front wall andcomprising coplanar lower and upper door panels of substantially thesame size and shape and defined by said pivot; g. means for yieldablysecuring said door in a vertical position; h. said lower door panelbeing of substantially the same size and shape as a horizontal crosssection of said throat; i. the top edge of said front wall, said sidewalls and said top defining an opening which mail is passed through asit is delivered to the mailbox, said upper door panel being dimensionedto close said opening when said door is in a vertical position; j. ahandle on the outer face of said upper door panel, and k. a securedreceptacle into which said throat opens at its lower end receiving mailfrom said throat, said receptacle having a capacity at least twice thecapacity of that portion of said throat above the lower edge of saidlower door panel when said door is in vertical position.
 2. The mailboxof claim 1 in which the means for securing the door in vertical positioncomprises weighting the lower door panel so that it has a weightslightly greater than that of the upper door panel.
 3. The mailbox ofclaim 1 in which the means for securing the door in a vertical positioncomprises magnetic means on one of the lower door panel and front wall.4. The mailbox of claim 1, together with magnetic means on said flangefor maintaining said door in a horizontal position.
 5. The mailbox ofclaim 1 which is adapted to be mounted on a post secured to said frontwall with its top end face engaging the underside of said flange and inwhich said secured receptacle comprises: a. a front wall that is adownward extension of the front wall of said throat; b. a bottom wall;c. a rear wall formed with an access opening; d. a pair of side walls;e. an upper horizontal wall extending from the lower edge of the backwall of said throat to the top edge of said rear wall; f. a hingedlymounted closure for said access opening, and g. mechanism for securingsaid closure in a closed, locked position.
 6. The mailbox of claim 5 inwhich said closure is hingedly mounted at its lower edge on the rearedge of said bottom wall and said mechanism for securing the closure ina closed, locked position comprises a slot formed in the upper portionof said closure and a hasp projecting rearwardly from said rear wall andadapted to have a padlock applied thereto after it is passed throughsaid slot.
 7. The mailbox of claim 1 which is adapted to be mounted onthe wall of a building and in which said secured receptacle comprises:a. a rear wall that is a downward extension of the back wall of saidthroat; b. a bottom wall; c. a front wall formed with an access opening;d. a pair of side walls; e. an upper horizontal wall extending from thelower edge of the front wall of said throat to the top edge of the frontwall of said receptacle; f. a hingedly mounted closure for said accessopening, and g. mechanism for securing said closure in a closed, lockedposition.
 8. The mailbox of claim 7 in which said closure is hingedlymounted at its lower edge to the forward edge of said bottom wall andsaid mechanism for securing the closure in a closed, locked positioncomprises a slot formed in said closure adjacent to its upper edge and ahasp projecting forwardly of the front wall of the receptacle which isreceived in said slot and adapted to have a padlock applied thereto.